At the TBZW conferences, Cabinet ministers from various countries, experts and leaders in various fields discussed wide-ranging topics, including specific issues that should be addressed to achieve the goal of beyond zero and the ways available to get there. They also discussed priority areas that Japan is making efforts in ahead of the rest of the world, including hydrogen and ammonia fuels and carbon recycling, as well as themes that transcend the boundaries of science, including green growth, finance and innovation. TBZW is aimed at contributing to achieving carbon neutrality for the world as a whole by serving as a platform for stimulating international discussions and cooperation, and sharing Japan’s technological know-how with other countries.

This article focuses on the International Conference on Fuel Ammonia,and Research and Development 20 for Clean Energy Technologies, or RD20, two of the eight conferences held as part of TBZW.

Ammonia as a zero-emission fuel

As climate change looms large as an urgent issue for humanity, ammonia is attracting fresh interest as a zero-emission fuel that does not give off carbon dioxide when burned.

This type of fuel has been given high priority in Japan’s strategy for carbon neutrality. METI has decided to spend about ¥70 billion on developing technologies that will enable the stable supply of ammonia power. The goal is to perfect such a technology by 2030 and to begin operating ammonia power plants by the 2040s.

Using ammonia as a fuel requires ensuring it can be stably supplied. An urgent task is to establish an international supply chain for fuel ammonia and bolster it on both the demand and supply sides.

This was what led METI to decide to hold the International Conference on Fuel Ammonia for the first time as part of TBZW. The conference featured speeches by speakers from Japan and seven other countries, and a launch event of the International Energy Agency’s first analytic report on ammonia power, “The Role of Low-Carbon Fuels in Clean Energy Transitions of the Power Sector.” In an effort to run a concrete project, a memorandum of cooperation on a project to introduce ammonia co-firing in Malaysia’s power plants was signed between Japanese and Malaysian companies.

A key achievement of this year’s conference was that the participants came to the understanding that it is important for countries producing fuel ammonia and those consuming it to work together to build a structure for production, supply and transfer technologies. Another important piece of the puzzle is a consensus to adopt a joint strategic initiative between public- and private-sector entities aimed at creating value chains that can produce stable, low-cost supplies of fuel ammonia.

METI aims to drive efforts to achieve a realistic energy transition and decarbonization process for the entire world by introducing measures to support wider use of ammonia.

In explaining the government’s measures to support the small and medium-sized parts manufacturers that support the aircraft industry, Akira Miyakoshi, who heads the aircraft component and material industries office of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry’s Aerospace and Defense Industry Division, said, “Now’s an important time in which manufacturers must brush up on their technology to help develop next-generation aircraft, but the situation remains tough for them to take off successfully.”

“It’s essential for us to take measures to maintain and strengthen supply chains, while supporting parts manufacturers, which total more than 600 across Japan,” he added, emphasizing the government’s plans to provide solid support to the aircraft industry.

The support has two purposes: to help parts manufacturers stay in business and to support their future growth. The key ways in which the government helps them stay afloat are through financing and employment assistance. METI’s regional bureaus are working with labor bureaus, the Industrial Employment Stabilization Center and local governments to encourage secondment and transfer of employees with diverse skills to other companies or industries. The program has so far resulted in the secondment and transfer of 354 employees in the Chubu region and 123 employees in the Kanto region.

A mid- to long-term support program encourages active application of advanced technologies developed for the aircraft industry in other areas, using a subsidy program to support drastic business reconstruction such as entering new business fields. The program is aimed at strengthening parts manufacturers by helping them expand their business portfolio.

METI is also helping small and medium-sized parts manufactures develop sales channels overseas, anticipating a recovery in aircraft demand. The specific goal is to encourage collaboration with other Asian countries where demand for aircraft is growing and the aircraft industry continues to expand.

About five years ago, METI began an attempt to build a supply chain covering the entire Asia region. For starters, the ministry is working to establish collaborative relations with the Malaysian government, aiming to sign a memorandum of cooperation between the two countries on civil aircraft industry cooperation by the end of the fiscal year.

Through these efforts, the ministry aims to help maintain and strengthen supply chains. In addition, it plans to support Japanese companies’ efforts to achieve carbon neutrality, or net-zero emissions of global warming gases.

Around the globe, efforts to achieve emissions-cutting goals in the aviation industry are underway. In recent years, airlines have announced road maps to decarbonization while aircraft makers have touted concept planes for the future. These moves continue to gain momentum even amid the pandemic.

“Japanese companies are no exception. They are accelerating technological development efforts for the future,” according to METI’s Sakura Murahashi, deputy director of the Aerospace and Defense Industry Division of METI’s Manufacturing Industries Bureau.

“It’’s important for them to find opportunities to collaborate with original equipment manufacturers overseas as early as possible to ensure that the technologies that give the Japanese industry an edge will be used in the next-generation aircraft models,” she said.

“We aim to support such efforts by Japanese companies through cooperation deals with governments and companies in Europe and the United States and technological development assistance measures,” Murahashi said, indicating the government’s intention to support Japanese companies’ efforts.